He already had his bags ready and documents studied when Antony Blinken, head of US diplomacy, canceled his trip in February. Beijing had to wait. Another crisis had opened up when a suspected Chinese spy balloon was detected flying over the territory of the United States. In full fever for balloons (some fake, as a joke), the escalation of tension increased because the Pentagon’s shooting down of that artifact (a weather observatory, according to its owners) was described as an “exaggerated reaction ” by the authorities of the Asian giant.
Blinken’s trip, his first to China as Secretary of State, has been rescheduled and he will fly out today to hold two days of meetings (Sunday and Monday). He will then leave for London, where a meeting focused on Ukraine is being held. Precisely, the war in Europe due to the Russian invasion is one of the topics that increases the tensions between the two superpowers.
The visit comes at another time of friction, following confirmation that China has had electronic espionage facilities at a base in Cuba since at least 2019 and the recent siege of US warships and planes in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait, the hottest point.
Still without specifying whether there will be a face-to-face meeting with President Xi Jinping, and beyond the meetings, which is no small thing in the current situation with airs of cold war, the advisers of the United States have low expectations about results.
They summarized the objective as getting Washington to call Beijing and get them to hang up the phone. It is very important for analysts to keep talking to each other despite the conflicts.
Blinken will try to press Beijing on the importance of contact between the two nations to improve relations.
As Daniel Kritenbrink, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, emphasized in a remote press conference, Blinken wants to establish a direct communication channel that facilitates and allows discussing important challenges, addressing perceptions mistakes and prevent miscalculations that do not lead to a conflict.
But Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang put the onus on Washington to improve ties between the two governments. “The relationship between the United States has encountered new difficulties and rivalries since the beginning of the year,” he said. “It is clear where the responsibility lies”, he added.
Qin appealed to the White House to stop using competition to harm China’s sovereignty and security. The US rapprochement position was called false by its continuous violations of China’s core interests.
Blinken has several meetings scheduled with officials from the Chinese Executive, and both governments hope that this occasion will be the start of a series of trips by other federal officials throughout the summer. The list of potential visitors includes Janet Yellen, secretary of the Treasury, Gina Raimondo, secretary of Commerce, or John Kerry, special adviser on the climate.
The Secretary of State’s trip should also serve to pave the way for Xi to go to San Francisco in November for the meeting of Asia-Pacific leaders. “It’s time for intense diplomacy,” the White House said.
